What does Grizzlies alleged dysfunction say about Wolves job?

5/21/2014Sports Over Beers, episode 17
Two special guests - Jon Krawczynski and Chip Scoggins - join this episode of the Sports Over Beers podcast. Jon covers the Timberwolves and just about everything else in town for the Associated Press; Chip is a columnist at the Star Tribune who recently weighed in on the Timberwolves-Kevin Love situation.
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Jon recently reported that the Wolves have softened their stance on trading Love, that they're more willing to deal the superstar than they were previously. Sports Over Beers talks about how it got to this point, and where this situation is probably heading. Might the Wolves keep Love or must they trade him? If you're Flip Saunders, what are you looking for in return? Does this situation compare to any other NBA stars in the past? Is Kevin Love a good leader? Should that matter? What kind of team could land Kevin Love? How will he be received when he returns to Minnesota in another uniform?
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Also, what kind of head coach are the Wolves looking for? Would the name Dave Joerger from Memphis intrigue you if he became available?
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Mannix wrote that on the surface things appear to be going pretty well for the Grizzlies.

"In truth, the Grizzlies are a mess," Mannix wrote. "They have an owner that hired Joerger, then wanted to fire him, then let him interview with Minnesota, then welcomed him back."

He goes on to outline some whacky goings on inside the Grizzlies organization, mostly relating to the team's principal owner, Robert Pera.

If all or most of the claims are true, what does it say about the Minnesota coaching job that Joerger stayed in Memphis? Of course, if Kevin Love is indeed on his way out in the near future, the Grizzlies present a better chance to win in the near-term.

In any case, there are parts to the piece that read like parody, even though they're not.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Pera fired back on Twitter:

Wow..@ChrisMannixSI What happened to journalistic integrity? No wonder people are calling me crazy. I would too if any of that was true

The piece later adds that some say Pera and Joerger have settled their differences and that's why he's returning as the coach for Memphis. "What's between Robert and I now is like 'Wow.," Joerger told the Memphis Commercial-Appeal. "This is how it's supposed to be. There's interaction and you talk about anything. This feels good."

But others say, according to Mannix, this hang-up was compensation between the Wolves and Grizzlies. This is pure speculation, but perhaps the Wolves assumed Joerger would simply be fired and balked at any potential asking price. Or perhaps Joerger was "leery of the rebuilding job a post-Kevin Love Wolves would be" and decided to stay with a promising team, Mannix writes.

Mannix wrote that Pera didn't respond to a request for an interview, but Pera tweeted to Mannix on Monday that this wasn't true.

@ChrisMannixSI Btw..you never contacted me. If you want to get your "source" on TV/radio, let's be open and have a talk. Name your time